HERSHEY - Grove City High School coach Jeff Bell saw what Lansdale Catholic running back R.C. Lagomarsino could do on tape.

Bell got a whole different perspective on what he could do on turf.

"That kid is a heck of a running back," Bell said. "You watch him on film and you don't realize how good he really is. Today, I got to see how good he is."

Lagomarsino was good. Real good. Record-breaking good as the senior gashed Grove City's defense for 353 yards on 31 carries to help dispatch the Eagles 40-17 in the PIAA Class AA state title game at Hersheypark Stadium Saturday afternoon.

He was fast, shifty, elusive and ejected - too late for Grove City.

After Lagomarsino's second touchdown, which gave the Crusaders a 12-7 lead, he flexed for the cameras, drawing a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. After his fourth TD, which sealed the game, he raised his left index finger in the air as he crossed the goal line, drawing his second unsportsmanlike flag and ejection.

"I don't really think holding my finger up in the air signaling we are No. 1 is a penalty," Lagomarsino said. "I guess it is. Whatever. We're state champs and that's all that matters."

Lansdale Catholic coach Jim Algeo, clutching the championship trophy for the first time in his 38-year coaching career at the school, smiled when he talked about Lagomarsino's performance.

"One of the things through his career, when he was challenged, he responded to the challenge," Algeo said. "He certainly did that today."

Grove City had trouble containing Lagomarsino all game. The back scored on runs of 78, 37, 72 and 27. His 353 yards were more than 100 yards better than the state championship game record set by Hickory's Andre Coleman in 1989, which was also the most yards gained by any back in any class. Lagomarsino's 31 carries also marked a Class AA record.

Bell's goal was simple. Hold the Lansdale Catholic back to 150 yards.

"I would have given him 150 yards without stepping on the field," Bell said. "I don't know how many yards he had."

When told how many yards he had, Bell smirked.

"Well, see, 150 would have been really nice, wouldn't it?" he added.

Grove City, though, started the game like it had started so many other games during the playoffs: sharp and proficient.

The Eagles drove 48 yards on eight plays to start the game, capped by a 9-yard touchdown pass from Jim Jaskowak to Jack Vallely off a perfectly executed play-action fake.

Grove City's defense held firm through much of the first quarter until Lagomarsino burst through a hole, cut quickly to the left and sprinted past Grove City safety Jesse Alfreno for a 78-yard touchdown run.

"When you are the last line of defense, it's pretty tough," Alfreno said. "He gives you a move, and he's by you. I'll take credit for a lot of those. I missed a few tackles that I should have had in the open field. I just blew it."

Lansdale Catholic (14-1) scored 25 unanswered points after the Eagles took the 7-0 lead. But the Eagles fought back.

Grove City was stopped at the 1 on a failed quarterback sneak by Jaskowak on fourth down, but two plays later, Lagomarsino couldn't handle a pitch from quarterback Mike Adams that bounded through the end zone for a safety.Grove City responded soon after, scoring on a 9-yard run by Alfreno one play after Adam Rudolph intercepted an Adams pass. Jaskowak hit Rudolph on the two-point conversion pass and suddenly, the Eagles were only down 25-17."We had a feeling we could come back," Jaskowak said. "We were only down by (eight)."But the Crusaders marched 75 yards on 11 plays that chewed up more than five minutes of the fourth quarter. Fullback Sal Nocchi punched the ball in from 6-yards out to give Lansdale Catholic a 15-point cushion.The Crusaders rushed for 455 yards to help overcome 120 yards on 10 penalties.Grove City squandered several opportunities to turn the game in its favor.The Eagles moved the ball into the red zone twice and came away with no points. They also had an apparent touchdown on a fluke play nullified because of an inadvertent whistle.In the second quarter, Alfreno shanked a punt off the side of his foot and the wind blew it back behind the line of scrimmage. Alfreno, at the urging of Bell on the sideline, scooped up the bounding ball and ran down the sideline for an apparent touchdown. But the referee blew his whistle and the play went down as a minus-3-yard punt."That happened to us before," Bell said. "I knew the rule. The ball never went to the line of scrimmage. It's a live football. You can pick it up and run it."That should have been a touchdown. I can't believe in a state championship game, the guy doesn't know the rule. That didn't lose us the game. We didn't tackle was the main reason we lost the football game."It was the first state title game appearance for both teams. For Algeo, it culminated an amazing year.In February, the 67-year-old coach had quintuple bypass surgery. In July, he was inducted into the Pennsylvania State Coaches Association Hall of Fame. And now he is a state champion."I'm lucky," he said. "It's been like a dream. It's fascinating. I'm just very thankful for all that has been given to me."Grove City has a lot to be thankful for, too. The Eagles turned a 0-2 start into an 11-game winning streak and an improbable run to the state title contest.As Bell addressed his team on the field one last time, he couldn't fight back the tears."I told them to hold their heads up high," Bell said. "We got beat by a better team today. That's the bottom line. That happens to you sometimes."